'Bank of mom and dad' study shows B.C. high earners get housing boost if parents also own

A Statistics Canada study into what it calls the "bank of mom and dad" shows home ownership among young high earners in British Columbia increases more than anywhere else in Canada if their parents are homeowners, too.

The study also finds that nationally, people born in the 1990s are twice as likely to own a home if their parents are homeowners, compared to those whose parents are not.

That almost triples for people whose parents own more than one property.

The study released Monday concludes that inequality of home ownership appears to be "reproduced across generations," with parental home ownership bringing their children big financial advantages.

The study says people in B.C. earning more than $80,000 enjoyed a 21.3 percentage gain in their ownership rate if their parents owned one or more properties, compared to the lowest gain of 12.7 per cent in Alberta.

The gain increased to 52.9 per cent in B.C. for people in the same income bracket whose parents owned three or more properties.

The study, based on 2021 data, says parental ownership makes the biggest difference in Canada's most expensive provinces, B.C. and Ontario.

"This may signal that in housing markets with higher property values, where higher incomes are necessary for ownership, parents' property ownership or wealth plays a larger role in their adult children's home ownership outcomes," the study says.

Responding to the study Tuesday, Federal Housing Minister Sean Fraser said that one's ability to succeed in Canada shouldn't depend on the money in their parents' bank account.

"There's going to be a lot of people who want to choose home ownership and it shouldn't be a barrier to them to access the market just because their parents never owned a home," Fraser told reporters.

The minister said the federal government's tax-free home savings account policy would help prospective homeowners save up for a house, and that the government had seen over 250,000 young people start an account since the policy was implemented.

He added that while home ownership remains desirable for many people, renters should not be discounted from the affordable housing conversation.

"We also shouldn't discriminate against the idea that a person can have a full life with meaningful participation in their community if they choose to rent," he said.